The 53-Man Packers Roster Projection (2.0)
GREEN BAY, Wis. – With Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst tasked with the ugly duty of cutting the roster from 80 players to 53 by 3 p.m. Saturday, here’s a late guess (with a few revisions since Monday) on who survives the toughest day in the business.
Quarterbacks
Who made it (3): Aaron Rodgers, Tim Boyle, Jordan Love.
Who didn’t make it (0): None.
Locks: All three.
Key decision: None.
Running Backs
Who made it (3): Aaron Jones, Jamaal Williams, AJ Dillon.
Who didn’t make it (3): Dexter Williams, Damarea Crockett, Patrick Taylor (NFI).
Locks: All three.
Key decision: Dexter Williams has progressed, which is obviously important, but Tyler Ervin’s versatility and some uncertainty at other positions made him the odd man out. With Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams headed to free agency, Dexter Williams is worth bringing back on the practice squad. But, as it stands, what’s the point of having a fourth running back when the first three on the depth chart are so good?
Receivers
Who made it (6): Davante Adams, Allen Lazard, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Tyler Ervin, Jake Kumerow, Equanimeous St. Brown.
Who didn’t make it (4): Reggie Begelton, Darrius Shepherd, Malik Taylor, Malik Turner.
Locks: Adams, Lazard, Valdes-Scantling and Ervin.
Key decision: Ervin hasn’t been a featured player of any offense in his first four seasons. That might change this year. His ability to reach top speed in a hurry is obvious. Kumerow probably will make it, too. Here’s Rodgers on SiriusXM NFL Radio: “I love his reliability. He makes plays, he plays with a lot of confidence and he’s a guy you love having on the squad.” The sixth spot is anyone’s guess. St. Brown was the draft pick but Taylor’s size could make him an asset on special teams, Turner has experience with Seattle and Shepherd outplayed them at practice but has little special-teams appeal.
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Tight Ends
Who made it (4): Marcedes Lewis, Robert Tonyan, Josiah Deguara, Jace Sternberger.
Who didn’t make it (2): Evan Baylis, John Lovett.
Locks: The four who made it.
Key decision: Lovett, who’s listed as a fullback but goes through drills with the tight ends, would be a tough cut but there are some redundancies between him and Deguara, the third-round pick. Watching Lovett streak past defensive back Will Redmond at practice last week is hard to forget, though.
Offensive Line
Who made it (10): LT David Bakhtiari, LG Elgton Jenkins, C Corey Linsley, RG Lane Taylor, RT Rick Wagner, RT/G Billy Turner, G/C Lucas Patrick, G Jon Runyan, T Alex Light, T Yosh Nijman.
Who didn’t make it (5): C Jake Hanson, G Simon Stepaniak (NFI), G Zack Johnson, T John Leglue, T Cody Conway.
Locks: Bakhtiari, Jenkins, Linsley, Taylor, Turner, Patrick.
Key decision: Right tackle is a mess, with Turner injured and Wagner not playing like a longtime starter. That coach Matt LaFleur didn’t immediately rule out moving left guard Elgton Jenkins to right tackle was perhaps worth noting. If Jenkins were to move to tackle, would there be any reason to keep Wagner, whose $2.25 million base salary would become guaranteed if he’s on the Week 1 roster? But that’s mere speculation. In my first rendition, I released sixth-round Runyan. But, if Jenkins starts at tackle and Lucas Patrick slides in at left guard, the team could use the interior depth. Runyan was my 54th player in my first projection because, at this point, he’s a one-position lineman.
Defensive Line
Who made it (5): Kenny Clark, Dean Lowry, Kingsley Keke, Tyler Lancaster, Montravius Adams.
Who didn’t make it (3): Treyvon Hester, Willington Previlon, Delontae Scott.
Locks: Clark, Lowry, Keke, Lancaster.
Key decision: Adams and Hester didn’t practice all week due to injuries. Would Gutekunst roll the dice with four defensive linemen for Week 1 at Minnesota? That seems like potential trouble against a run-first team like the Vikings, even if Za’Darius Smith and Rashan Gary could help in a pinch. Adams’ toe injury might linger past Week 1, which is why I kept Hester in the first rendition. But Hester’s not healthy, either, and there’s no telling when he’ll be ready to go. In a typical year, maybe the Packers would go shopping on the waiver wire for a short-term fix but COVID restrictions would make it a challenge to get an addition into the building and onto the field for Week 1.
Outside Linebackers
Who made it (5): Za’Darius Smith, Preston Smith, Rashan Gary, Tim Williams, Jonathan Garvin.
Who didn’t make it (3): Greg Roberts, Randy Ramsey, Tipa Galeai.
Locks: The Smiths, Gary and Williams.
Key decision: Williams, who flopped as a third-round pick by Baltimore, seems to have found a home in Green Bay. He had a really good training camp. Garvin had a promising camp, too and, being a draft pick, gets the nod over the undersized Galeai. Roberts came off PUP this week but it’s hard to imagine he did enough to earn a spot.
Inside Linebackers
Who made it (4): Christian Kirksey, Kamal Martin, Oren Burks, Ty Summers.
Who didn’t make it (2): Curtis Bolton (PUP), Krys Barnes.
Locks: Probably all four.
Key decision: Martin’s knee surgery through a wrench into this position. The Packers will have to keep him until Sunday so he can go on injured reserve but return at midseason when healthy. So, in reality, Kirksey, Burks and Summers will be the trio until Bolton finally comes off PUP. Martin’s pain could be Burks’ gain. A third-round pick in 2018, Burks hasn’t gotten anywhere close to meeting expectations. Martin’s injury presumably reopens the door.
Cornerbacks
Who made it (5): Jaire Alexander, Kevin King, Chandon Sullivan, Josh Jackson, Ka’dar Hollman.
Who didn’t make it (4): Stanford Samuels, DaShaun Amos, Kabion Ento (IR), Will Sunderland.
Locks: Alexander, King, Sullivan and Jackson.
Key decision: Jackson hasn’t been great but it’s not as if the Packers have so much depth that they can get rid of a second-round pick. Hollman, as the better athlete, gets the nod over Samuels, who had a miserable Scouting Combine after a quality career at Florida State, and Amos, a Canadian import in his first NFL camp since 2017.
Safeties
Who made it (5): Adrian Amos, Darnell Savage, Will Redmond, Raven Greene, Vernon Scott.
Who didn’t make it (1): Henry Black.
Locks: Amos, Savage, Redmond and Greene.
Key decision: None, really. Scott, a seventh-round pick, has the size and speed to become, at the least, a weapon on special teams this season.
Specialists
Who made it (3): K Mason Crosby, P JK Scott, LS Hunter Bradley.
Who didn’t make it (0): None.
Locks: All three.
